Chapter Text
Clarke was glad Kane allowed her the trip to Mexico (one month, yay). Clarke knew he would because that would mean Abby (her mother) would replace her in her job. Well, not exactly replace her because her mom might be the best surgeon and pathology expert, but she wasn‘t Clarke.
Marcus and Abby have known each other for years. They didn't get along in the beginning. They formed a close friendship after her dad's death. They often made jokes, that Bellamy and Clarke will end up exactly like them, which both of them quickly denied. She was so sick of the bickering, that she gladly took an offer to go for the expedition for a newfound crypt in Mexico.
She needed a vacation. Yes, vacation for Griffin meant digging up ancient bones. Unfortunately, her journey was at its end and now she stood in Becca‘s airport, back in Polis with a skull in her bag ( which may have or may have not been illegally transported).
Just as she looked around for Raven, she saw her flashing that boy at information service. Boy, did she just do that? Poor guy was left speechless. while Raven put her shirt down.
Clarke's golden halo caught Raven's attention. She smirked at the boy who was white as a wall except a cute blush blossoming on his cheeks."Rae, is that your way of paying for a ticket ?“ Clarke asked, her hair shaking from side to side with a disapproving shake of her head. Raven wasn't afraid since it was accompanied by Clarke's smirk and mischievous eyes.
"Oh my god! There you are, finally. I missed your sorry ass,“ replied Raven, immediately reaching to hug her friend. She didn't miss how Clarke looked. She looked hot, like so hot. Her hair was even blonder than two months ago. Her normal pasty ass looked like a caramel candy.
„You love my sorry sassy ass though.“ was Clarke's response while hugging her. If she missed something during her time in Mexico, it was this little spitfire Raven Reyes.
Raven rolled her eyes playfully. "Of course I do, so how was that Mexico shit?“ Clarke's eyes narrowed while she faked an angry gasp.
"Raven!" She hit Raven's arm. "For your information it was amazing, you know the history and spell of that place always amaze me.“ Clarke's eyes lit up like a kid during Christmas morning. Raven knew she shouldn't tease Clarke. If someone put a new gadget in front of her, she would jump up and down.
Still, she smirked at Clarke. If there is an opportunity to tease Clarke, she will take it. "Ew, you sound like our nerdy agent Blake.“ Clarke couldn't argue. Since she was informed of the new partnership between her and FBI, she expected some dumb guy with only a gun as a valuable possession. Well, she was wrong. Not that he didn't carry a gun like it was his another limb, but he was also hella smart.
Clarke's eyes snapped to Raven's. Blazing fire oozed from those icy blue circles of hers. „Don‘t even mention him. I needed a vacation because of him and now I am ready to kick HIS sorry ass.“ Raven let out a chuckle, she wasn't going to argue with her. She knew firsthand it was better to be beside this woman than the opposite of her.
Clarke rolled her eyes, but she couldn't say she didn't look forward to their banter, well banter was a euphemism. More like frenemies on a good day and nemesis on a bad day. Still, she had to admit that riling him up was very fulfilling.
Raven snorted, which Clarke knew was a bad sign. "Yeah, like you don‘t like his perfect ass in that tight suit, honey.“ She dared to wink at Clarke and make a Honka Honka gesture with her hands. Clarke quickly wiped the previous thought that she had missed this woman from hell.
Clarke begrudgingly agreed with her. "Oh, shut up. Yes, he may have a perfect ass and symmetric acromion with a flat abdomen, but he is such a bastard that even that can‘t save him.“ Raven smiled and shook her head. Only Clarke would comment on a body like that.
"Couldn‘t you just say 'sexy'?" Raven asked her. Clarke could, but that word was dangerous if it ever reached Raven's ears, especially coming from Clarke's mouth. Better safe than sorry. Also, it didn't hurt to educate her friend on anatomy. So, she didn't respond to that.
They walked for a few minutes until Clarke got suspicious of a man, who seemed to be following them. She quickly turned around to face him and caught his wrist. He was dressed in a simple suit. He didn't seem like a threat but as Clarke thought before, better safe than sorry. That didn't apply only to her annoying best friend.
"Sir, why are you following us?“ Clarke's voice was low. He snatched his wrist back and went to capture her own hands. She was prepared and kicked him, took again his hand and maneuvered him to the ground. Just as she did it, the security showed up and she knew it looked bad. A woman standing above a man, clutching his hand, while he was on the floor. She did the first thing that came to her mind, yelled that he attacked her. The man looked up with a glare.
"Miss, I am from Homeland Security." He growled and turned to the security guys "Arrest her" He nearly shouted from his anger. Then his eyes landed on Clarke again. "and you, give me the bag,“ he pointed to her oversized purse. Clarke didn't like to be ordered what to do, but she wasn't above the law.
„So, that is what this is about,“ she said calmly while picking up the skull without a second thought. People around her gasped audibly. The guy only huffed, handcuffed her and dragged her away. Raven didn't even start to protest, too stunned to yell at him.
„Let's try it again, who you are and why do you have that skull,“ The same guy asked. Clarke just grinned at him. They were in some small room, fake mirror and all that. God, they acted as if she was a terrorist. She didn't smuggle any drugs nor money. She just had an old skull in her bag. No time to argue any longer, hot bath waited for her at home.
"I already told you." She sighed, tired of the tirade "I am Dr. Griffin and I am back from Mexico, where I was identifying Mayan remains“ She said for the twentieth time. Her ID and documents were on the table.
"Why don‘t you have any documents on the skull. For all I know, it's your souvenir from a murder you committed" Clarke resisted the urge to facepalm." and" he added "you attacked a Homeland Security officer“ Now, she could use her connection to FBI because this was getting ridiculous.
She put her elbows on the table. "What is a woman supposed to do when she is followed by a creeper. You shouldn't have startled me, it was only self-defense “ She let a little evil smirk posses her face. She put down an officer! Hell yeah.
Someone snorted and she snapped her eyes to the sound. Think of a devil and he shall appear. Well, she did ask for help from the FBI, fucking karma gave it to her. There he was, leaning against the door frame. His signature smirk plastered in his face. Ugh!
The homeland security guy paled a little which was comic since he was probably twice Bellamy's age. "Oh, special agent Blake, glad to see you again. What do you need,“ he said.
Bellamy just smiled. “Good morning, sir. I am here for that blond little monster" He had the nerve to vaguely point at her. His finger was met with one of her glares. "You can let her go"
The man gulped and cleared his throat. " With all due respect sir, we are not finished here."
"Well, you are. She is saying the truth. Princess here is a partner of the FBI and I would recommend giving her case to me" Bellamy smirked at Clarke again, his meaning clear. Like she was some criminal. She will show him a case, alright. With her fist.
"Don‘t call me that. There is no case to give. I didn't do anything against the law" Clarke was offended by his ongoing nickname. He was such an arrogant asshole.
"That will depend on me to decide, so you better behave" he paused " princess" Clarke's hands curled into fists. This was so not how her day back was supposed to go.
The guy, Pike she learned, looked between Bellamy and her. She saw when he gave in, probably tired of her anyway. "Okay, sir. You can have her" Pike stood up, gave Bellamy a nod and tossed at him the keys to her handcuffed hands. He marched right out of the door.
Bellamy looked at the skull on the table and took it in both hands. Amusement danced in his eyes. "I expected a better souvenir for me, princess." Clarke has to admit that it was a funny remark. Not that she would say that aloud.
"Stop, give it back and tell me why are you here.“ She whisper-yelled at him. God, you have a funny way of delivering prayers. She wasn't back for even an hour and already in a drama. Bellamy already knew where she was which was odd. Pike didn't seem to be calling anywhere to alert the FBI. She swears Bellamy has some radar that points to her whenever she is stuck in some situation where he can add the fuel to the fire.
He ignored her question about how he found her but he gave her back the skull. "Well, you have quite the timing, Griffin. We have a crime to solve“ He took her suitcase and walked through the door. Not looking back if she followed him, he knew she would.
The silence in the car was weird. She was back for two hours. She was tired and yet she was going to a crime scene with him to solve another crime. She looked at him, his jaw clenched. His mind probably wondering about the case. The determined and focused look suited him, she thought. Not quite like when his face was lit by a genuine smile from time to time (that was never directed at her) but he still looked handsome.
"If I couldn't even go home to change, can you at least tell me some intel ?“ she asked, bored and still a little bit angry. She worked with him for almost three months and yet, he still didn't include her much to the investigation, besides her identifying. She does all the work so all he can do is to snatch the bad guys. Still, he sees her as if she does nothing. She fucking solves the cases for him so he can be the hero.
"You and I both know, that you like the scene untouched and fresh, so FBI doesn‘t 'ruin' the evidence,“ he said sarcastically. Then he saw the anger in her blue cold eyes and sighed. "Fine, this morning a girl named Charlotte found a dead body under benches of their high school football pitch. Monty and Jasper are already there, waiting for your orders, princess.“ Clarke snarled at the fucking nickname. At least he listened to her about FBI's forensic team methods didn't stand a chance against Clarke's team. More likely they managed to fuck it up. It wasn't that she looked down on them. They were good but her team liked details and not just DNA and fingerprints. Sometimes the scene around the body said more about the murder. Sometimes the bones spoke louder than just their ID.
"For you, I am Dr. Griffin or Clarke,“ she replied with low, warning voice. Bellamy resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Dr. Griffin and her team of 'squints'. She was so high on her horse. Bellamy tried to like her but sometimes it was impossible.
"Still throwing your education at everyone, how predictable.“ He was getting angry now, how can she be so self-centered. Yeah, Dr. Griffin, better than everyone, above them all. Princess was just a funny nickname to tease her, but it suited her well.
"There is nothing wrong with addressing me properly, especially since you won't use my name.“ she knew, she was being childish, but no one will judge her just because she has done so well in school. She knew she shouldn't be so adamant about her title but every time he called her princess she could see the hidden meaning. Princess, the spoil little dumb bimbo. She wasn't dumb and she wasn't a fucking bimbo.
"So what, you have a doctorate. I‘m the one with a gun here.“ he gestured to his waistband, where his gun was, his eyes not leaving the road. How is the saying? Absence makes the heart grow fonder? It seemed to him it could go the other way around too.
"You are not the only one. I own one too, just because I don‘t have it here doesn‘t mean I can‘t use it.“ She didn't lie, she did have a gun and license. Bellamy found that kind of hot. Well, he found everything about her hot, but even that didn‘t save her from her horrible character.
They were going in circles. There wouldn't be any winner. He knew she did her job well and quite frankly he needed her. Not that he would admit that aloud. "Do I have to beg you to do your job, princess?" He tried a lighter tone. Clarke let a small smile out. The image of Bellamy on his knees was tempting. He did sound a bit desperate. He knew her answer, knew she wouldn't let a killer run free in the streets. Clarke wouldn't let him off the hook easily though.
Her eyes landed on Bellamy. "Make me your partner, include me in the investigation. You know I can help more than just in the lab.“ She would say something she never thought would leave her mouth around Bellamy. She bit her lip. "Please"
Bellamy sighted, they already discussed it. She was smart and cunning and it would make sense, but he won‘t give it to her without a fight. Not only he would be directly responsible for her, but she would also have to take courses and tests to be approved. For all her bad flaws, he knew she wasn't just a squint. He saw something in her, fire and strength.
"You know the rules, Clarke. You need to be approved and be able to defend yourself and right now, you have an assault of an officer on your file.“ It wasn't a lie. She could be his partner, but she had to be approved by the FBI, which could be difficult.
"Oh please, I was defending myself. He should have identified himself and you know I own a license to have a gun and I have training in self-defense.“ Her chest was heaving with pride. She was wearing him down. She knew it could work. When they weren't trying to kill each other, they work really well together.
"And those are the ones and only things I like about you. When they aren't used on me, you look hot when you are beating someone.“ he winked at her. Once, when he went to the gym in his office building he found his partner Miller sparring with Clarke. That was another thing about Clarke, everybody seemed to like her. Even his wary friend and partner. Safe to say, he was impressed. She almost won and Miller wasn't someone who lost often.
Clarke blushed a little. She truly sometimes didn‘t understand him. One second all blaze and fury and then all teasing and mischievous eyes. It confused her. She liked logic and facts and steady life. It reminded her of the conversation she had with Raven before she left for the expedition.
One month earlier
**Raven was in their apartment with a glass of whiskey. They were packing her suit together. They talked about Clarke's reason for her getaway. Also known as the devil Bellamy Blake. Clarke complained about him all the time. Raven looked at her and blurted out. „So sleep with him, ease the sexual tension“. Clarke almost choked on her glass and raised an eyebrow.
"What?!" She shouted, "If there is any tension, then it is a tension of wanting to chop others head off.“ The look on her friend's face read this „Oh honey, please“ In that second she knew Raven was drunk beyond reason (even if she only had two glasses)
**
She wasn't blind, alright. He was attractive. The classic tall, dark and handsome, but hell would freeze before she would even consider sleeping with him.
"Fine, I will try, okay? But now, let‘s get to business, we are almost there.“ he said and turned the car to the scene, FBI and police cars everywhere. Clarke smiled at him. It surprised him. He could count on one hand the times she smiled at him as she smiled at others.
"Thank you.“ she almost silently whispered. She had to bite her lip to prevent letting out the happy grin.
They parked beside a TonDC van, Raven‘s precious vehicle, that she cared about like it was her child. Jasper waved at them, holding Clarke's scrubs and pants. Her friends knew her too well. She saw the corpse right from where she stood. Yellow tapes everywhere, FBI and her team jumping around. Classic routine. Jasper and Monty analyzed everything around the body, took leftovers of clothes and pieces of evidence, insect and soil. These two are a good team, a chemist and engineer and both with abilities of entomologist and botanist. Nerdy, someone could say, if they saw them, but they were an important part of the team. Raven wasn't there yet, which meant she was already doing her magic on the computer, back in their Ark lab. Name, which Kane choose for their part of the TonDC institute. Her mom is also there, but judging by decomposition of the body, she had no reason to come.
Clarke jumped out of the car and headed to Jasper, but before she could take her lab clothes, Jasper caged her between his arms and one second later, Monty joined him, whispering something about doing a group hug without him. Clarke laughed and patted their heads.
"Finally! We were worried, boss.“ whisper-yelled Jasper into her ear with so wide and warm smile that instantly warmed her. Jasper was a big goofball with a brain that could destroy the world. Clarke lightly punched his arm, if Kane was around he would give them a piece of his mind. After all, he was the one calling shots.
"Pshh, don‘t let Kane hear you or he will give me shit for the rest of my life,“ Clarke smirked at him. Maybe her job was a little bit morbid, but she had the best company with her and she tried to do good for the world. What is better than that.
"Okay. He may be our boss, but you are the head of our team, Griffin,“ Monty declared behind her. She smiled warmly at him. She missed them so much.
"So, what do we have here?“ Clarke asked while putting her clothes on. Monty gave her the recorder she used during the investigation. She learned it was quicker and better than a piece of paper. Her mind cleared like always when she stood before a puzzle she had to solve. If someone had asked her 5 months ago she would touch a examine a body from this century, she would laugh at them. Before the partnership with the FBI, she didn't have a team and she touched bones centuries old. Now, she couldn't imagine her job any other way, she still loved to identify corps from the Middle Ages or Prehistory but this gave her a thrill she had not experienced before.
She studied the body first, recording her thoughts while examining. The pelvis indicated it was a man. He had full-grown bones and teeth, which meant he was older than 18. She immediately saw the recently broken ankle, so he probably fell from the tribune, but it wasn‘t a big fall because he didn't have any broken ribs or spine. The ossification indicated, that he was between 20 and 25 years old. She put on her gloves and examined closely the vertebra c4. There was a cut from a very sharp knife, very precise. It must have hit the carotid artery. It was probably the cause of death. That was good, for starters. She gestured to her team that the body is ready to be put in the van and brought to the lab for better examination.
A shadow appeared by her side She whipped her head and saw Bellamy standing behind her. She stood up from the victim. "So? What do you have for me?“ He stood there in his suit, hands holding a little notebook and pen.
"A little bit soon, don‘t you think?“ She teased him. Like she already hadn't some valuable information for him.
Bellamy rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Come on, we both know you have the basics ready for me“
Clarke walked to the van and started to peel the special clothes down. Bellamy followed her."It's a man, around 20-25 years old. He has a broken ankle, which could mean that he slipped or was pushed from the tribune, but not from the top. Cause of death is bleeding out, his throat was slit, but that would mean someone was prepared and have known this area well enough. The killer found a way to prevent that much blood to be seen or he killed him somewhere else and dump him here.„
He looked at her, stunned. He knew she was good, but it always amazed him. No matter what he thought of her at the moment, she always got through and that mattered. He had a strong impulse to praise her but fortunately was stopped when Jasper approached them.
" Clarkey, you are killing it today. You are right, we found a piece of heavy plastic cover, probably for a bike. We think the victim laid on it while the killer slashed his throat. Also, by the stage of bugs Monty found, he was killed probably three days go“ Jasper was a gift from heaven. He and Monty could tell exactly when someone was killed if there wasn't enough flesh and just by bugs or soil. Clarke chose her team brilliantly.
Bellamy wrote everything down in his little notebook. They, especially Clarke, could be a huge pain in the ass, but their work was an incredible help for the FBI. He had got a lot of information to start this case, starting with questioning the little girl who found the body and people in her school. Tomorrow, Raven will have an image of the victim and Bellamy will know his identity. Charlotte was now home with her parents. They did permit the FBI. He could ask her some questions. He wasn't pleased with it, the kid must have been scared, but he was good with kids. He had experience and not just because of his little sister Octavia.
He said his goodbyes and thanked the team. Then he drove to the house, where Charlotte lived. It wasn't a long way. He braced himself and got out of the car, preparing questions in his head. When the parents let him in, Charlotte was sitting on the couch, waiting for him. She looked shocked, but who can blame her. She was a kid on a walk around the school and found a dead body. He sat on the loveseat opposite her. He let out a small smile.
"Hi, little one, don‘t be scared. Everything is okay. I will just ask you some questions, okay?“ He calmly looked at her, already seeing her calming down. She nodded and took a deep breath.
He gulped and bit his lip. He could raise hell while questioning bastards but this wasn't that case. "Charlotte, can you tell me, if you saw someone around the pitch in the last three days, someone suspicious?“ he asked, holding her gaze. Charlotte fidgeted with her hands.
"I don‘t think so, but on Friday, there was this big match with our enemy‘s school team. There were a lot of people and it was played in the evening, around 7. pm," she answered, chewing her lip. Bellamy decided that it was enough information.
"Okay, that's enough for now, Thank you, Charlotte“ he turned to her parents. They stood in the hallway, already waiting for him. He patted Charlotte'S shoulder while walking towards her parents.
"Agent Blake, do you know, who did this? We never had a murder here before, this is a friendly neighborhood. Our poor Charlotte already has nightmares and now this.“ Her mom said with tears in her eyes.
"Unfortunately I can‘t, even if I knew. I am sorry and I promise I will do everything in my power to solve this.“ he left with that statement. He gave them his work number in case Charlotte remembered more. He let the rest on Miller.
Miller was his partner for most of the cases. He was smart and had an idol in his dad, David. Bellamy liked him, he was like a brother. He was younger, but they started in the FBI at the same time and became friends fast. This tough guy knew, how to do this job and is one of the greatest young agents the FBI has.
For now, Bellamy had to wait. For permission to question people and employees at the school and for the identity of the victim. He knew the princess didn‘t eat since this morning and will not eat until dinner, so he stopped at FLAME for sandwiches and some soda. She was the brain of this operation and she should eat, so what. If there was something he knew about her, it was her dedication to her job, which beat every other aspect in her life, even eating.
Going through the institute is like going through a maze. He stayed a little bit longer in the history section (like always), which was his favorite part, another benefit of this cooperation. He could easily go through the new entry that was made for better and faster entrance, but he couldn't resist. When he finally reached the Ark lab he caught a flash of blond in a white lab coat standing on the huge square platform in the center of the lab. Her „office“. He could see the wheels in her head running. Her hair was coming out from a bun on her head. The bones already laid out on the table in precise order.
"Quite a view, right Blake?“ he almost jumped when Raven whispered into his ear. She looked quite pleased with herself, with the reaction she caused. Raven was the only one he liked from their group if he didn't count Kane. She was a little spitfire. Little evil genius.
"Hello to you, Reyes.“ He spat back. Clarke continued to work blissfully oblivion of her surroundings.
"Princess“ he shouted and saw her turning towards him. She looked confused and then her eyes found the bag in his right hand. A big smile covered her face. She got down to him. He saw her eyes sparkling. Griffin and food. She was so obsessed with food from the flame. She and the owner, Murphy went way back. She put her gloves down and gestured to her 'second' office. He followed closely after her.
"Bellamy, you didn‘t have to bring me lunch,“ she said while her nostrils took a little trip. The food smelled delicious. They sat down on her sofa.
"Really? When did you last eat?“ He knew he had her there and she did too. Her eyes turn towards the floor and she sighed. Bellamy smirked. She rolled her eyes and took the bag from him. There was a note on the bag. A meal worthy of my princess was written on the note in Murphy's handwriting. She looked pointedly at Bellamy.
"So Murphy can call you princess but when I do you are ready to cut my balls off?" He raised his eyebrows. Clarke snarled. " He started after you taught him that, asshole!" She calmed down a bit "but thank you." She bit out.
There were some perks of being in cooperation with Bellamy Blake. When he wasn't the bane of her existence, he was her angel... on rare occasions.
"Believe me, you don't wanna be mean to me. I have another surprise for you,“ he told her between bites of his sandwich. She looked up at him, suspicion was written all over her face. He grinned, taking another bite.
"You could or could not be almost officially my partner, but you still need to write the papers with questions and take a physical test and psych evaluation“ Clarke's eyes were glowing. She didn't believe it. After their fight this morning and considering their 'relationship'. He did it for her.
"Indra allowed it almost only just for her own amusement. She said to me she can‘t wait ‘till we kill each other and that she will take money from whoever wants to join her bet“ he started laughing at his own words, remembering his conversation with her earlier. Her classic stoic face when he told her erupted with laugher, the first one he has ever heard or seen since he started working there which was 4 years ago.
Three hours earlier
**
Indra's eyes snapped to him from her computer. "Are you serious? Oh well, that's not a problem, if she passes all of the tests“ she finally said after she calmed down. "But you want, how did you call them? Oh yeah, you want one of the „ squints“ to be your partner, especially Griffin?“ he nodded and let her continue.“It could be fun, yeah okay, let her do the tests and we will see, I hope she passes and then I can make bets who will kill each other soon“ she said with a sly smile. She was so here for it. Especially since 5 months ago she sat right where she was and listened to inraged Bellamy whine about the blond woman. “and Bellamy?“
"Yes?" He perked up. "Good idea". Bellamy shook his head. Wasn't she just teasing him about this decision a minute ago?
Indra was, but she knew the girl had potential and even if she feared there was like a 60% chance of those two fucking it up. She was there for whatever outcome.
**
„Who can blame her, she could be right,“ was Clarke's immediate response. She liked Indra. Even if the goosebumps she felt when the woman looked at her were 90% and 10% respect. She loved a badass woman in a high position. She asked Bellamy when she can take those tests. She looked so eager that Bellamy for once was glad for his choice. He may have half hated her but he saw how eager she was.
"We can start tomorrow morning. Since it's Friday I won't have any work until Raven ID's the body or I get the permission to ask around the school" His job was great but the waiting sucked. He wanted to have the killer the soon the better but no he had to wait for his superiors to give him permission or for the judges. Since both of those weren't much working on the weekend, there was no time to waste to take those tests with Clarke. He knew what kind of questions were there, he took a harder version himself when becoming an agent. He also would be watching her physical tests (because it‘s for his safety, she could have to cover him and help him, so he has to see her body in action, right, right?)